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General Zaroff
General Zaroff (also simply known as Zaroff) is the main antagonist in the 1924 short story "The Most Dangerous Game" by the late Richard Connell, and the 1932 live action film adaptation of the same name. He is a former Russian Cossack who has grown tired of hunting animals and now experiments on hunting humans for his own satisfaction. In the 1932 film adaptation, he was portrayed by the late . Biography When Sanger Rainsford falls off his boat, he ends up at Ship-Trap Island. There he meets General Zaroff, an older man. Zaroff was a Cossack who served in a war under Czar Nicholas II of Russia until his downfall. As a young boy, his father gave him a little gun which was specially made to hunt sparrows. His father complimented his marksmanship on turkeys. He killed his first bear in the Caucasus. However, he later grew bored with hunting, due to the animals that he was hunting were not as cunning. So eventually, he started to hunt human beings. He fed them well and made sure that they had lots of exercises. It is made clear that he uses the channel is sharp rocks to lure in ships and trap most of his victims. He also had a training room in his cellar. He offered to have Rainsford accompany him on the hunt, but Rainsford refused. Zaroff then declared that he would be the next to be hunted. If he refused, he would be tortured by Ivan until he agreed - in the film adaption, he threatened to make Eve Trowbridge (a character not in the original novel) his sex slave if Rainsford wins. The hunt begins, with Rainsford getting a head start. Zaroff, Ivan, and his dogs follow close behind. Zaroff taunts Rainsford many times. He comes close to finding his prey hiding in a tree, right above his head. Over the next two days, Rainsford is able to build traps that give him the advantage. One of them cripples Zaroff's arms, and the other kills Ivan and the dog. Zaroff corners Rainsford at a cliff edge, but Rainsford jumps off before the general can shoot him. Zaroff returns home, but cannot enjoy dinner because he is worried about replacing Ivan and Rainsford's fate. He goes up to his bedroom and finds Rainsford there. Zaroff is surprised and says that the hunt is over, but Rainsford says that he is now a beast. Zaroff zealously prepares for a man-on-man fight with Rainsford. In the end, it is implied that Zaroff was killed by Rainsford. Personality Zaroff is an insane, heartless and psychopathic man with a thirst to hunt human beings. Despite his sociopathic and dishonorable state, he acts like a kind and chivalrous gentleman and is extremely friendly and hospitable to Rainsford when he is washed up on the shore. He considers "human hunting" to merely be a game for his own amusement, and he sets up the island as an arena for the unlucky soul who crosses his path. Gallery Image14.jpg|General Zaroff in the 1932 film adaptation of The Most Dangerous Game. Category:Pure Evil Category:Book Villains Category:Movie Villains Category:Live Action Villains Category:Status Dependent on Version Category:Serial Killers Category:Sophisticated Category:Wealthy Category:Aristocrats Category:Thrill-Seekers Category:Male Category:Elitist Category:Military Category:Charismatic Category:Torturer Category:Faux Affably Evil Category:Chaotic Evil Category:Sadists Category:Social Darwinists Category:Delusional Category:Animal Cruelty Category:Type Dependent on Version Category:Psychopath Category:Failure-Intolerant Category:Destroyer of Innocence Category:Successful Category:Deceased Category:Perverts Category:Rapists Category:Blackmailers Category:Provoker Category:Kidnapper Category:Extravagant Category:Egotist Category:Homicidal Category:Poachers Category:Misanthropes